“It’s Paris in the early half of the 20th Century. Picasso, Hemingway, James Joyce, Andre Breton and Fernand Léger, as well as so many others, might all be found sitting around a table of this famed café, talking of art, literature and philosophy. While today it is a tourist destination, with all of the photos gracing the walls of so many famed artists, writers and philosophers interacting with each other, it’s impossible not to feel the vibrations, the energy of the great ideas and thoughts born in this very place.
“The inspiration for this piece starts with the photograph of the café, a place that drew me in with its stories and history. Notice the couple at the center of the photo, right in front of the doors. They look very modern — chic, in fact. Her shoes alone draw me in, but they are blurred in their movement, showing the passing of time. This café was once something different, and time will pass and it will be something different again. All we have is right now.
“I paint the photos to emphasize what I find interesting — in this case, the café and the couple — and to play with the abstraction of memory. But it always begins with the photo, returning me to my start in art, behind the lens. At heart, though, I am always a painter, and I let the paint help me communicate what the photo alone cannot.”
“Café Deux Magots”
Size: 12 x 12 x 2
Medium: Painted-over photo
Price: $120
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Stephanie Schlatter Art 